Intel DZ77GA-70K and Core i7-3770K Review

Conclusion

Maybe we've got complacent. Maybe we've got greedy. Or maybe Intel knocked the Sandy Bridge range out of the park and it's a tough act to follow. However you look at it, the Intel Core i7-3770K is most definitely the Sophomore Slump. Don't get us wrong, it's by no means a bad processor at all. If the i7-2600K and i7-2700K didn't exist then we'd be flogging our granny to own one. It's just they do and this is much of the same. If I could use a metaphor at this point, and as I'm the person writing it I can, then the Z77GA-70K and i7-3770K combination is a lot like a bowl of Kellogs Frosties. You might be really excited to begin with, but it becomes clear quite soon that all you've got is tarted up Cornflakes. I happen to love Cornflakes.

Ahem. Let's start again. At its heart the i7-3770K is a i7-2600K with a reduced nm process and the upgrade of HD4000 integrated graphics rather than HD3000, coupled to the ability to run Memory at frankly insane speeds. It doesn't overclock in a particularly eye-popping manner. It hasn't got a wealth of instructions to make a mockery of its clock speed in the same way that a 2500K annihilates a Q6600. It's the same thing we're all used to, but with a bit of a spit and polish.

That's by no means a bad thing. The 2nd Generation CPUs from Intel are a near-perfect blend of performance and affordability. Even the X79 and i7-3960X didn't give us so much performance boost that we considered selling organs to pay for one, so perhaps it was ridiculous to expect the 22nm Ivy Bridge CPUs to do so.

I'm very aware this reads like quite a downbeat conclusion. It's just this is exactly as excellent as the CPUs we already have. If you're in the market for an upgrade from system that's now a couple of generations old, then you couldn't do any better. If you disbelieve the hype then prepare to eat your hat, and shoes, and anything else you can find that is nutritious because this really is as good as everyone tells you that it is. But if you already have a decent LGA1155 setup, then you're probably better off waiting for a bit. The PCI Express 3.0 benefits are negligible. The HD4000 upgrade is good, but the HD3000 was no slouch and anyone wanting serious gaming would have a discreet solution anyway.

You'll notice I haven't mentioned the motherboard yet. That reasons are three-fold. Firstly almost nobody actually buys an Intel Motherboard, so it's a limited audience. Secondly we are saving our overclocking tests for another motherboard, so there isn't a huge amount to cover, and finally the pre-release BIOS on our model was dodgy at best, and would make it an exceptionally tough recommend under even the best of circumstances.

So if you haven't yet sampled the delights of the LGA1155 range stop reading right this very moment and hasten to your local emporium and exchange money for this box of treasures. In the same way that the previous generation was unquestionably OC3D Gold worthy, so the Core i7-3770K is too. It's just not worth upgrading from if you've already got one of those self-same 2nd Generation CPUs.

Thanks to Intel for supplying the DZ77GA-70K and Core i7-3770K for review. Discuss in our forums.

Some of the new boards look sweet, but the IB chips are just slightly more efficient SB chips which don't OC as well. To the couple people above me saying they're going to upgrade from SB to IB i say do NOT do it. There's no performance gains upgrading from SB to IB apart from the fact you can run memory much faster. Watch Tom's video review on it, he covers it all perfectly. The only time i'd upgrade from SB to IB is if i had a locked chip on a H67 chipset and wanted to get an unlocked IB chip with a Z77 board

Some of the new boards look sweet, but the IB chips are just slightly more efficient SB chips which don't OC as well. To the couple people above me saying they're going to upgrade from SB to IB i say do NOT do it. There's no performance gains upgrading from SB to IB apart from the fact you can run memory much faster. Watch Tom's video review on it, he covers it all perfectly. The only time i'd upgrade from SB to IB is if i had a locked chip on a H67 chipset and wanted to get an unlocked IB chip with a Z77 board

i agree, not worth the change.......i wouldn't even call it an upgrade

I need to buy a new board and cpu. I understand that in this case I should get the ivy bridge cpu with a z77 board however they have sales on now for the 2600k or 2700k cpu. Would it be better to get the older chip with the z77 board or go with the Ivy bridge 3770k cput?

I need to buy a new board and cpu. I understand that in this case I should get the ivy bridge cpu with a z77 board however they have sales on now for the 2600k or 2700k cpu. Would it be better to get the older chip with the z77 board or go with the Ivy bridge 3770k cput?

Personally, i'd go for a SB chip if it's on sale for an awesome price. If not, i'd choose Ivy. Either way i'd go with a Z77 board for definite though as overall the good boards (MSI Z77 GD65, Gigabyte UD5 etc...) seem to OC better with both SB and IB chips than the old Z68/P67 boards

Well there we are, it's pretty meh really (kind of as we expected). I can't see a reason to upgrade from SB cpu to IB unless you are running 2x pcie3 cards, in which case you might actually use the extra bandwidth. You never will with one card.

The z77 boards look nice though, they are a refinement of the 68s but again, not worth upgrading from 68s.

I totally agree with TTL, if you have SB/z68 stick with it, if you haven't then go IB/z77 unless the prices are more than about 15% greater in which case grab an SB/68 setup.

Well there we are, it's pretty meh really (kind of as we expected). I can't see a reason to upgrade from SB cpu to IB unless you are running 2x pcie3 cards, in which case you might actually use the extra bandwidth. You never will with one card.

The z77 boards look nice though, they are a refinement of the 68s but again, not worth upgrading from 68s.

I totally agree with TTL, if you have SB/z68 stick with it, if you haven't then go IB/x77 unless the prices are more than about 15% greater in which case grab an SB/68 setup.

This pretty much.

Aria are doing the 2600k for 209 at the mo,will be interesting in the least to see the price on Ivy,because unless I am missing a big something here,its a hard thing to justify going the extra.(those temps still have me worried,and yes I know its not the same thing,but they are still too high for me)

No doubt the 3930k is better. You have to remember the 3770k is not competing with the 3930k so you can't really compare the two. The 3930k wins hands down and given the price difference (once we know IB prices) it would have to

No doubt the 3930k is better. You have to remember the 3770k is not competing with the 3930k so you can't really compare the two. The 3930k wins hands down and given the price difference (once we know IB prices) it would have to

thanks for the quick response!

cheers mate!

i watched toms 2011 reviews again and the 3930k scores where higher then the 3770k ones!

But i think we should reserve that gold sticker for when we get OCing results. I have seen a lot of other reviews where this chip gets VERY toasty when you put it past stock. It looks like they used TIM paste instead of fluxless solder between IHS and CPU die = 80's @ 4.6 while under water ( opposed to 50's/60's for a 2600k)

For an unlocked chip designed for OCing the temps have actually made this chip unappealing as an upgrade. People might as well pick up a 2600k cheap when the prices drop and they could get a higher clock = the same speeds over all. This is an enthusiast chip after all

Anyone who wants to upgrade should wait for another revision/ until they sort out the heat issues

I don't like to be pedantic, because the general point is a good one... but the measure of Watts is already a rate (a measure of energy used per second), so saving "1 watt per hour" doesn't make sense. You're just saving one Watt.

I don't like to be pedantic, because the general point is a good one... but the measure of Watts is already a rate (a measure of energy used per second), so saving "1 watt per hour" doesn't make sense. You're just saving one Watt.

It's like a PIN number

I know where you're coming from, but there are lots of people who don't know that - lots of people who find 'watts per hour' easier to understand.

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